MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE Goes to Series

Amazon Studios has announced their next round of pilots being ordered to series. Among them: The Man in the High Castle.

The series is based on Philip K. Dick’s alternate history novel, in which the Axis powers — Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany — won an extended World War II and are now ruling over a conquered United States. There is also a story within the story, as many of the characters are reading The Grasshopper Lies Heavy, an alternate history fiction novel detailing the defeat of the Axis by the U.S.

The Man in the High Castle won a Hugo in 1963, and Amazon Studios delivered a pilot episode for a television adaptation in January. This is the third attempt to adapt the book for television. The first was in 2010, a joint project between the BBC and FremantleMedia, with Ridley Scott as executive producer. Then Syfy made the attempt in 2013, again with Scott on board.

“During the latest pilot season, Amazon customers made The Man in the High Castle our most watched pilot ever,” said Roy Price, Vice President of Amazon Studios. “These new series, including our first docu-series, are some of our most ambitious to date and I’m looking forward to their premieres in the future.”

The current version again involves Ridley Scott and Frank Spotnitz as executive producers. Series stars are Rufus Sewell (John Adams), Luke Kleintank (Pretty Little Liars) and Alexa Davalos (Mob City).